Editing is an essential part of writing, and good editing skills can improve the quality of written work. Tips for improving editing skills include using pocket manuals, reading aloud, and working through a grammar textbook. Common mistakes to avoid include comma splices, passive constructions, and complicated words. Good editing won’t make writing perfect, but it can make it clearer.
Writing an article, blog, report or memo is only half the battle. Many people consider a document finished when they have reached the end of their thoughts. However, evidence to the contrary shows that most written documents could benefit from more editing skills. In fact, editing is the other half of writing. Good editing skills can give your written words a more polished and professional look.
You can enhance your editing skills by keeping a pocket manual close to your writing space. Such manuals often include common grammatical errors, lists of easily confused words such as “affect/effect,” and punctuation guidance. Many word processing programs also have grammar programs, which can highlight obvious mistakes or spelling mistakes.
While these programs may initially be helpful, sometimes they go wrong. Spell checker programs often mix up words that sound the same but have different spellings and meanings. So, on words like they/there or is/is, be sure to choose the correct spelling. Don’t just rely on spelling and grammar checkers to verify your writing; instead, resort to a style manual, if necessary, to put the suggested changes to an editing skill test.
Also, editing skills often improve when people read their documents aloud to someone else. Alternatively, another person can read a document to you. Reading should be done slowly so that you can catch missing words and typos. Many find that reading aloud alone isn’t quite as productive, because your mind can naturally fill in missing words or overlook typos.
If you can’t read your work aloud to someone else, then read the paragraphs out of order. Alternatively, read each sentence from the end of your work and work backwards. This process prevents the brain from filling in the blanks because sentences are read out of context. This can be a great exercise to improve your editing skills.
If you find your grammar consistently lacking, consider improving your editing skills by working through a grammar textbook. This can be especially useful if you buy the teacher’s manual, as you’ll have access to the answers. It’s never too late to learn how to improve your grammar. Taking a writing class is also a great option and can be accomplished with little expense at the community college level.
Also, most people who seem to have a natural “feel” for grammar and editing have it because they are readers. Reading the work of others, especially in the same style you need to emulate, can help develop this feeling. While editing skills may be more difficult for some people to master, they are not impossible. May need some work to help improve editing skills.
Some tips to improve editing skills are as follows:
1. Know or own a list of the most commonly misspelled words.
2. Avoid using commas to separate two independent sentences, called comma splices.
3. Avoid using the verb to be, which is called a passive construction.
4. Try to clarify by avoiding complicated words.
5. Vary the length of the sentence.
6. Knowing that a paragraph should only elaborate on one idea.
7. State your central idea clearly at the beginning of the paragraphs.
8. Whenever possible, let someone else read your work aloud to you and comment on your work.
As you improve your editing skills, you learn that writing is a process that really never ends. In fact, most good writers and editors will look at their work and think about how they could have changed it. Perfection in writing is nearly impossible. Good editing skills won’t make your writing perfect, but they can make writing clearer. Ultimately, for most writing endeavors, clearly stating your points and minimizing grammatical and spelling errors are the loftiest goals.
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